Relief operations underway in Palu City as extent of humanitarian impact emerges.

Australian Red Cross has launched an appeal to help provide urgently needed aid to people and communities affected by Friday’s devastating double disaster in Sulawesi, a powerful earthquake followed by a tsunami.

As the death tolls continues to rise above 800 and with thousands more feared dead, Red Cross has mobilised to provide life-saving aid in some of the worst affected areas.

The Red Cross Red Crescent aims to respond to disasters as rapidly and effectively as possible, by mobilising its resources (people, money and other assets) and using its network in a coordinated manner so that the initial effects are countered and the needs of the affected communities are met.

The Australian Red Cross (ARC) is a key Partner National Society, supporting the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) response to natural disasters in the Asia-Pacific.

This document has been prepared to assist Red Cross Red Crescent Movement partners to better understand Bangladesh’s legal preparedness for international assistance, identifying and explaining relevant legal provisions for international assistance providers. It is a non-exhaustive desk-based research yet to go through national verification process, and is not intended to be a definitive analysis of Bangladesh’s disaster risk management system.

Australian Red Cross holds grave concerns for those asylum seekers who have lost basic assistance.

Australian Red Cross holds grave concerns for those asylum seekers who have lost basic assistance.

Red Cross CEO Judy Slatyer said, "Our view is that people should have their humanitarian needs met while in Australia regardless of legal status; they should never be left destitute in the Australian community. They should have their claims for protection fairly assessed and sustainable solutions must be found for people who need protection.

When disaster strikes, Vanuatu businesses can provide, store and distribute relief supplies through a single procurement system.

When Tropical Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu in 2015, it was one of the worst disasters to ever hit the Pacific region. The Category 5 Cyclone left 75,000 people in need of emergency shelter.

One year later Cyclone Winston slammed into Fiji. Its 225mph winds demolished structures all across the main island. Another Category 5 cyclone, Winston left 44 people dead and was the strongest on record to make landfall anywhere in the world.

'I felt finished.' In three words, a woman in the fishing community of Biasong recalled the despair she felt when she surveyed the damage inflicted by Typhoon Haiyan.

The strongest tropical storm ever to make landfall in the Philippines, Typhoon Haiyan ripped through the Visayas region on November 8th 2013. 16 million people were affected, 8,000 people were killed and 1.4 million homes were damaged or destroyed.

The conflict that caused the largest refugee crisis since WWII and killed over 400,000 people has been littered with violations of international humanitarian law (IHL).

In the last few weeks, the world has seen gruesome examples of such violations. From an alleged chemical attack in Idlib that killed over 80 civilians, to the suicide bombing that killed at least 126 civilians, including 68 children while they were waiting to be evacuated from the town of Rashidin.

A new report has found that more than 70 shipping containers packed with high heels, handbags, heavy blankets, canned food and other unrequested goods were sent to Vanuatu after Cyclone Pam in 2015. Ten months after the cyclone, 18 containers remained uncollected, accumulating nearly $2 million in storage fees, while more than half of the canned food items had expired.

By Dr Phoebe Wynn-Pope, Australian Red Cross

Tuesday June 14, 2016

On Wednesday morning, three medical facilities were destroyed in the Syrian city of Aleppo. At least 15 people are reported to have been killed and dozens wounded, when bombs rained down on the al-Bayan and al-Hakim hospitals, and the Abdulhadi Fares clinic.

Samoa's main islands, Savai'i and Upolu, are experiencing heavy rain, and the Samoa Met Service has warned people to expect flooding, landslides and flying debris. Flooding is also expected in the capital, Apia, if the river flushes debris upstream.